Hi there!

“I know every bird in the mountains and the creatures of the field are mine.” Psalm 50:11

It’s that time of year again when our feathered friends seek seed at our feeder just outside our kitchen window. Even though Gary is the one that has all the questions, I have quite a few for God myself when I finally reach heaven. Why did He make flocks of sparrows and doves, often having a peckish dominator; whereas other kinds seem to travel on their own? I would love to see flocks of cardinals and blue jays with their brilliant red and blue. Why do black-capped chickadees take one seed at a time and fly away while others have enough courage to feast for a while? And then there are our granddogs, Lucky and Maverick whom I have trained (or they have trained me) to not eat food out of their bowls but straight on the floor. God must have enjoyed making all these creatures for us so He could see the smile on our faces. He knows what we like and that’s a comfort.

Here are some excerpts from an e-mail that was received from William in Yangon: “We had a great time to share about Jesus during this time. We celebrate Christmas 7 times at
7 places just to introduce about Jesus. Many were saved… God is opening the doors for us here. Many things are changing which is good for us. The price of car are also going down - now a new car that used to cost about $25000 became $6000. That’s amazing. One of my friend in car company told me that for a new car imported from China
cost $6000 and a car license cost about $4000… We continuously have contacts with with ex-prisoners and supplied them some medical needs. We have some who decided to follow Jesus. I will try to write their testimony later.“

This past week I sent $7900 US to Richard for his truck. We have been so encouraged by all those who contributed. Please pray that he will get the best truck for the money sent and that bricks will be sold for a good price so that he can buy more materials to make more. Go to http://bit.ly/Apb7OV to see some incredible pictures from the orphanage. Everyone seems to enjoy the work. They are a family.

Please continue to pray for Brandon Spears who is looking for a part-time job to help him get through his education at Sheridan College this semester. Only two weeks left before the Burton family moves to their new home. Please pray that they will have good opportunity to reach out to their new neighbours.

Home Group happens this Thursday at the Burtons’ house at 7:00 p.m. when we will again be reviewing our study on Islam and praying for our world, our country and each other.

Take care,

Wendy
wendy.carter@kainos.org
This blog is a summary of our 9:00 Sunday morning services held at 7777 Churchville Rd., Brampton, ON L6Y 0H3, 905-230-8116. It can always be found at www.blog.heartlandfellowship.ca.

Firsts by Gary Carter: Gary received a book for his recent birthday from a good friend called Robertson’s Book of Firsts (Who Did What for the First Time). Patrick Robertson spent 50 years compiling his data. For example the Chinese claim to have invented the toothbrush on June 25, 1498. The handles were wooden or ivory with bristles set at right angles and the only difference between now and then is that the bristles extended nearly half the length of the handle. “Firsts” are positive and interesting particularly those that occur in our own personal lives. Can you remember the first time you met or saw your spouse? Dr. O.J. Smith, founding pastor of Peoples Church, Toronto, said, “Why should anyone hear the Gospel twice before everyone has heard it once?” Unfortunately most don’t respond to the Gospel when they hear it once. It may take once, twice or multiple times before it strikes one’s heart and locks into their life for a variety of reasons. Unfortunately it may take a tragedy or deep disappointment to catch one’s attention. Giving up on people too soon is not smart on our part. When did you hear the Gospel for the first time? Are you glad that you heard it repeated until you got it?

Revelation (Part 11) by Steve Macdonald: From Revelation 6:9-11 we learn about the fifth seal being opened and the “souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained.” A martyr is a person who willingly suffers death rather than renounce his or her religion or is a person who is put to death or endures great suffering on behalf of any belief, principle, or cause: a martyr to the cause of social justice. So who are these souls? The possibilities are wide ranging and abundant.

It could be Israel that is to be saved as a nation; those killed for their belief in the Gospel through the years; or those who will be killed for the “Word of God“ and their “testimony” after the Church is caught up. The Israelites had the law and the law was
the Word of God. They obeyed the law. The world has hated them and persecuted them.
They have died for their beliefs. So one could argue that these souls are the Jewish people (Deuteronomy 7:6). Is God calling the Jews home for their observance of His laws? While this is possible, the truth is that getting to heaven through observance of the law isn’t going to happen (John 1:16-17; Ephesians 2:8).

What about those killed for their following of Jesus throughout the many eras of persecution? Are all the people persecuted and killed now being called to heaven (John 5:28-29; I Thessalonians 4:15-17)? What about those who believed but did not face
persecution? Do they not get called as well? The simple answer is yes they do. So are these souls who are seeking judgment of the earth and their blood be avenged, souls
that were persecuted throughout the years? Could some of these be Paul and Peter, Stephen? Absolutely! Positively! Maybe. Could be they are the people from the Church in Sardis (Revelations 3:4).

What about those who will be killed for the “Word of God“ and their “testimony” after the Church is caught up? God, in Revelation, is showing John future happenings rather than what is in the past, so it is possible that God is providing us some insight into future persecutions and is also reassuring us that for those who are killed in His name, there is a reward waiting. These people are dressed in robes of white, just like Jesus. A robe of white is a symbol of purity, peace, serenity (Revelation 3:5). They were told to rest. These souls are obviously bitter, angry, resentful, thirsty for justice (Matthew 11:28).

Anyone of these view points could be argued for or against with corresponding scripture to prove or disprove its validity. After studying this, did I get a clearer understanding of Revelation 6:9-11? Absolutely! Positively! Yes! There will be troubles. There will be deaths in my life. There will be anger, a want for justice. There will be hard times.
There will be times of persecution, pressure to reject the Gospel. There will be different views of God. Religions and people will conflict with the truth. But in the end none of that is important. What is important? Look up Mark 14:62 and Philippians 2:9-11.

My revelation is not that I walk away each week with a comprehensive understanding of the meaning of the messages contained in Revelation. It doesn’t matter whether I understand the symbolism each week. The hidden stuff will be revealed in His time, when I most need it. It is that He is opening my eyes and heart to the words which I have previously read, but not necessarily taken in and that I am openly sharing these revelations with others.

Conversations with Jesus or Perhaps It is Better to Say Condemnations from Jesus (Luke 11:29-54) by Chris Burton: At the end of chapter 11 Jesus speaks to the crowd that had increased and then to the Pharisees and teachers of the law. The crowd kept asking for a sign from God. Jesus responds with a reminder of Jonah’s duty as a messenger from God to his generation just as the “Son of Man” is the messenger to the present generation. Jesus punctuates the message with images of those of Nineveh that repented standing up on judgment day as this generation is condemned. He then continues with the illustration of the lamp of the body. Nobody lights a lamp and then places it in a dark place where it can’t be seen or be useful. The same is true for us. It doesn’t do us any good to have the “light” within us if we are also keeping darkness within. The light must replace the darkness fully so that it shines for all to see.
Jesus is invited to a Pharisee’s house for dinner. The Pharisee is surprised that Jesus did not wash before the meal which leads into six woes from Jesus.
1)      You worry about the outside when you should be more worried about the inside - be generous to the poor and the inside will be clean. (It’s a start.)
2)      You give your offerings as instructed, but neglect justice and the love of God. Do the first but the second is the more important. (You can’t pick and choose.)
3)      You love the best seats in the synagogue and respectful greeting in the market place. (They are looking for status above all else.)
4)      All that you have done…all that you hold as important…is meaningless and will be lost to time. You think yourself important? Not so much - you are an unmarked grave. (Hey, that hurts our feelings!)  You make laws for the people to follow which they can hardly do and then you do nothing to help them/
6)      You build tombs for the prophets that your ancestors killed. By doing this you are saying that you approve of what your ancestors did. Because of this you are now going to be held accountable for their past deeds (this generation - all the people).
7)      You have taken away the key to knowledge. You claim “knowledge” but you know nothing and you hinder others from knowing God’s Word and His place of worship. (Again that hurt our feelings!)

Me, Myself & I by Gary Carter: What should I do with me in 2012? What drives me? If I don’t get it I get uncomfortable, dissatisfied, depressed or bored. If I do get it I get relaxed, fulfilled, happy and satisfied. Then when do I need to shut off some things to make space for other things because there is only a finite amount of time? Check out www.spark-TV.org to review last week’s basic motivational bins applied to various areas of life.

Last week we looked at this information in a grid of 48 areas of life. One column is a piece of life. Let’s change this diagram to a circle with the following areas each having a slice (some may be bigger than others): work, money, spiritual & growth participating, personal growth and learning, friends, sports & entertainment, body and health, marriage and family. What is important to you or people in general? You can discover this by determining the number of Internet searches for each. “How to grow spiritually” was searched 1600 times per month and there are 741,000 web pages offering advice on that phrase. There were 33,100 searches for “how to get rich quick”. 135,000 searches were made on “Steelers schedule”. There were 823,000 searches on “how to make friends” with 65,300,000 web pages offering advice. People want to make friends but they generally don’t see the connection between their question and personal growth. The best place to grow and to make friends is in church.
John 10:7-10 says, “Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” Follow the Master in all areas of life to have a full life.

People want to experience life at various levels.
1. Satisfaction: The amygdala is the part of the brain that is its drug dispenser releasing various chemicals called neurotransmitters to make you experience various emotions. For example, we are created by God to experience enjoyment by the release of brain endorphins but pursuing satisfaction for its own sake leaves a person empty.
2.Success: The prefrontal cortex is the region of the brain that “has been implicated in planning complex cognitive behaviors, personality expression, decision making and moderating correct social behavior. The basic activity of this brain region is considered to be orchestration of thoughts and actions in accordance with internal goals.” We are created with the capacity to sort out the good from the bad but our ability to do so is marred by our sin nature. We must think things through as difficult as it may be to manage ourselves. So what if we don’t feel like doing something in particular. If it is the right thing to do, then we need to do it regardless of whether or not it feels good.
3.Significance: The only way we can have long term significance is through the Holy Spirit working in us. Read Ephesians 5:15-20 and I Corinthians 3:10-23. If you follow the Lord’s will which will develop your personal character then you will make the best decisions such as in spending your money or choosing where to live. Alcohol diminishes your amygdala’s capacity send the right chemical signals so that you can manage your life according to science and drunkenness leads to excess according to Paul. You can experience the fulness of the Holy Spirit in a big way through music and being thankful. Let the Holy Spirit be in control. Someone said a long time ago, “Only one life will soon be past; only what’s done for God will last.”

The Return of the Pun by Steve Macdonald:
Ambulance Driving  by Adam Muhway
Battle Axes  by Tom A. Hawk
Clear Sky Forecast  by Esau Starrs
Do I Look Fat?  by Donna Gogh Thare
Danger! By Luke Out
Come on in! by Doris Open
When’s The Revolution? by Millie Tant
The Sweat Shop by Hiram Cheap
The Lion Attacked by Claude D. Armoff